March 28 (Bloomberg) -- Robusta coffee growers in the
Brazilian state that leads production of the variety sold less
of the coming season’s harvest than first estimated before the
period starts, Cepea said.

Sales in Espirito Santo came to no more than 5 percent of
the 2012-13 crop, against projections for as much as 10 percent,
the University of Sao Paulo research group said in a report
yesterday. Farmers in the state presold 15 percent to 20 percent
of the current season’s harvest, analyst Margarete Boteon said,
citing a Cepea survey.

“Due to price drops and refrained sellers, players expect
that from January until last week, 5 percent of the production
at most has been traded for future delivery,” Boteon said in
the report. “This occurred despite the fact that the robusta
crop in Espirito Santo state will be significantly higher.”

Harvesting of robusta in Brazil, the world’s second-biggest
producer of the variety after Vietnam, usually starts by May.
The beans are used in espresso and instant coffee.

Brazil will produce 16.5 million bags of robusta in 2012-13, above a prior 15.33 million-bag forecast, according to Terra
Forte Exportacao e Importacao de Cafe Ltda., the nation’s
second-largest exporter. Production of the variety was 14.3
million bags in 2011-12 and 13.4 million bags in 2010-11, data
from the exporter show.